A Different Kind of Slayer Mission
by FaithInHim4ever
Summary: When Buffy faces a situation that puts her daughter in danger, she'll do anything to protect her. Even if that means using her Slaying skills in a brand new way. R/R


DIS: I DO NOT own any of the chars from BTVS. They belong to Joss Wheaten. I do however own anyone you don't recognize.

A/N: I know Anya died in the show, so for the sake of this story, let's just say Buffy named her daughter Anya Joyce, to honor her friend and mother.

"A Different Kind of Slayer Mission"

Twenty-six-year-old Buffy Anne Summers sat on the front porch of her home as she watched her five-year-old daughter, Anya Joyce, playing with their golden retriever puppy, Noelle, along with Willow's adopted daughter, eight-year-old Alyssa Renae.

She loved Anya with all her heart and she would do anything for her-just as she would for Dawn and their friends.

Bufffy had given birth to Anya five years ago as prophesied by the first slayer after they had closed the Hell Mouth for good.

Ever since then, they had moved to San Francisco and everyone had settled down into their own routines.

While Buffy and Dawn, along with Anya had gotten a house of their own, Willo had moved into a house a few miles away with her fiancé Morgan.

Xander had taken up a job teaching self defense classes and had married again after three years.

Though it was clear he would never forget Anya, he had learned to love again. Baby Anya had taught him that.

Xander's wife's name was Samantha and they had a three-year-old son named Nicolas and four-month-old twin girls named Kassandra and Kayla.

The day was clear and warm. It was the perfect day to be outside.

As the girls threw a ball for Noelle to fetch, Buffy grinned. She loved watching her daughter have fun.

Anya was as curious as her name sake, but that's where their similarities ended.

Where Xander's late fiancé had often been outspoken and often blunt to the point of being rude, little Anya Summers was anything but. She never liked hurting people's feelings and she was very empathetic towards others. Once more, bunnies were one of her favorite animals.

As Buffy continued to watch Anya and Alyssa playing with Noelle, she decided to get them all some lemonade.

"You girls want some lemonade?" She asked as Noelle ran back to Anya with the ball.

Anya grinned, her blond braid moving up and down as she nodded and clapped her hands together.

"Please, Mommy?" She asked.

"Aw, sure thing, sweetheart. How about you, Lyssie?"

Alyssa nodded eagerly.

"Yes, please!" She added.

"All right. Do you guys wanna help me make it?"

"Okay!" Both girls said in unison. With that, they followed Buffy inside the house.

As they were squeezing lemons into the water, Dawn sauntered in from the front of the house.

"Hey Dawnie!" Buffy greeted her with a smile. "How was your day?"

Dawn shrugged.

"Okay. We have a test in history on Monday."

Before Buffy could ask on what part of History, Anya raced to Dawn and threw her arms around her aunt's waist.

"Auntie Dawn! Auntie Dawn!"

"Hey, sweetie. " Dawn greeted her. "Aw, come here." With that, she picked the child up and gave her a hug. She planted a kiss on her head before tickling her tummy.

Anya's melodic laughter filled the kitchen as Dawn continued to tickle her.

Releasing her niece a few minutes later, the just turned twenty-year-old turned to her sister.

"I just wanted to let you know they put JAWS out again."

Buffy grimaced as Noelle pranced in the kitchen and ran right for Dawn.

Their new next door neighbors had gotten a Pit bull a few weeks after they had moved in.

Anya, who wasn't afraid of anything became terrified of it after he had growled and snapped at her a few times while she was walking up to the house.

The only time she wasn't' afraid was when Noelle was with her.

Besides, Jaws as Dawn and Buffy had nicknamed him, Anya hadn't shown any fear towards other dogs in the neighborhood and around town. She loved Xander's Saint Bernard, who she had promptly named Beethoven after Xander had told her she could help choose a name.

As for Willow's animals, Anya adored Midnight the cat and her Lab mix named Abby.

"Thanks, Dawnie." Buffy said as she finished making the lemonade with the girls help.

Dawn nodded.

"It's okay. I love these little munchkins."

Anya frowned as Buffy set the lemonade on a tray, along with a few cookies.

"Mommy, do we have to go outside?" She asked. "I'm afraid of the big dog."

Buffy put the tray down and knelt down to her daughter's level.

"Ahn, it'll be okay." She assured her. "Besides, I would never let anything happen to you if I could help it. You feel safe with me, don't you?"

Anya nodded without any hesitation.

"Of course you feel safe around Aunt Buffy." Alyssa quipped as she snatched a cookie off the plate. "She's the Slayer."

"Not to me." Anya said. "She's my Mommy and she'll always protect me."

Buffy grinned as she embraced her little girl.

"That's right." She told her. "I will always do my best to protect you."

Anya nodded.

"I know. I love you, Mommy."

"I love you too, honey." With that, she extended her hand to Anya and picked up the tray with the other.

Before they left the house, Buffy turned to Dawn.

"You wanna join us a little later?" Buffy asked.

Dawn smiled.

"Sure. But I wanna get some studying done first."

Buffy grinned.

"That's my girl."

Dawn play swatted her before going upstairs.

Getting outside, Buffy became aware of the dog almost immediately.

As it started to growl, Anya backed up into Buffy and tried to hide behind her.

"Anya, sweetie, it's okay." Buffy assured her. "You said it yourself. I'm here and I'll protect you."

Anya nodded, but she still looked unsure.

As the dog snarled, Buffy rolled her eyes.

"Growl yourself." She said, staring the dog down. She made sure not to make direct eye contact with it, but she wanted to intimidate it. She had never been afraid of dogs before and she wasn't going to let this one get the better of her.

The dog actually backed up a little at Buffy's challenging gaze and laid down.

"That's what I thought." Buffy said as she turned around to enjoy a snack with her daughter and niece.

A few weeks later, Buffy was in the house, working on some late night patrol plans while she waited for Anya to get home from school.

Usually she drove her, but Anya's best friend, Gabriella's mother offered to take her that morning.

Anya never missed a chance to ride with her best friend. She and Gabby were very close. They were so close that Gabby called Buffy 'Aunt Buffy and Anya called Gabby's mother, 'Aunt Carol.

As Buffy stared at the clock, she heard a door next door open, but she didn't think anything of it.

She figured maybe one of the teenage boys who lived there was taking out the garbage.

Just then, the phone rang.

Going into the kitchen, Buffy picked the phone up to hear Dawn's voice on the other end.

"Hey sis!" She said cheerfully. "What's up?"

Buffy smiled despite herself. It was nice to hear her sister happy for a change.

"Okay, I'll bite." Buffy said before realizing the pun she had made. Her sister's giggle made her realize what she had done. "Either you got an A on the test you took, or Randal asked you out."

"BOTH!" Dawn shrieked into the phone.

Buffy pulled the phone away from her ear and stuck her forefinger in it to clean it.

"Well once I'm done finding my hearing I'll congratulate you." Buffy said dryly.

"Oops. I'm sorry, Buff." Dawn said with a slight giggle. "I didn't mean to…wait a minute. Are you saying I actually damaged the Slayer?"

Buffy laughed.

"I think you might be the only mortal who has."

Dawn laughed at this.

The sisters talked for a few more minutes.

"Did Tom fix the fence yet?" Dawn asked.

"Not yet." Buffy said with a sigh. "I hope he does soon. It scares me to think of what that dog is capable of if he gets out."

"Well when I looked a few days ago, the hole wasn't big enough for him to get out." Dawn assured her. "I'm sure they'll get it fixed before that happens."

"Hopefully." Buffy said. She was about to say something else when she heard a beep. "Dawnie, I have to go. Someone's beeping through. What time do you think you'll be home?"

Dawn sighed, but answered her big sister's question.

"I have study group until five and then we're going out for pizza afterwards. I'd say around nine or so. Ten at the latest."

"Okay. Be careful and have fun! I love you."

"Love you too."

"One more thing." Buffy said just as Dawn was about to hang up.

"Yeah?"

"Do you have your stake with you?"

"Yup. It's tucked away in my backpack."

"Good. Have fun." With that, she pushed a button that took her to the other call. "Hello?"

"Hey Buff, what's up?" Xander's voice came through the other end.

"Nothing much. I'm just waiting for Ahn to get home from school. Gabby's mother should be dropping her off soon."

"Do you two wanna come out for Chinese with me and Willo and Alyssa?"

"We're so there." Buffy told him. 'I don't have patrol tonight, but Anya needs to be in bed by nine."

"Gotcha. We'll have the little slayer in bed on time."

Buffy laughed.

"Xan, you know Anya could turn out to be perfectly normal, right? And I would love her just as much as I do now."

"I know. But still. It would be cool to train her if she turned out to be the next Slayer." Xander mused thoughtfully.

"I know." Buffy agreed. "I just don't want you to be disappointed if…." Her voice trailed off as she heard a car door open and close.

She waited for the familiar sound of Anya running in the back or front door and straight for where she was. She waited to hear her daughter call out her signature, "Mommy, I'm home!"

But neither familiar sound came.

Instead, a sound that chilled Buffy to the core was soon heard, followed by the unmistakable sound of a shrill wail. The first sound was one Buffy rarely heard. But whenever she did hear it, she knew something was wrong immediately.

Without a second thought, she told Xander she had to go and sprinted for the front door. That's where she had heard the scream come from, she was sure of it.

As she ran outside, only one name stuck in her mind.

Anya.

Getting outside, the sight that met her eyes made her heart skip a beat and her stomach drop out from inside of her.

She was just in time to see Anya backing up fearfully just as a white blur jumped on top of her.

Anya let out another scream as she saw the teeth of the ferocious dog baring down on her.

"Anya! Anya, cover your face!" Buffy instructed as she aimed a spray bottle of mace at the dog who was now fully on top of her baby girl.

"Mommy! Help!" Anya cried fearfully just as the dog bit down on her right shoulder before going for her face. "Ma-Ma-Mommy!"

"Curl up!" Buffy shouted again. "Cover your face and curl up!" She was aware she was shouting, but she knew Anya would understand she wasn't angry at her.

Anya attempted to do as her mother said, but she didn't have time as the dog sank its teeth into the right side of her face.

"No!" Buffy yelled sharply. "NO!" With that, she positioned the mace bottle where the dog was crouched low over Anya. She didn't want to hit her daughter by accident, but time was running out.

Praying to her mother and God for good aim, Buffy pulled back the nozzle and let it go.

As she heard the spray make contact with its intended target, she breathed a sigh of relief.

But her relief was short lived as she realized it hadn't phased the animal.

'If only you were a vampire.' Buffy thought. It was then that she got an idea. She wouldn't normally harm an animal in any other situation, but she had to save Anya. Her daughter was in danger and she had to do something before the dog mauled her completely.

Thinking quickly, Buffy picked up the nearest stake and threw it hard.

It hit the dog in the side, causing him to take one more bite near Anya's right eye before turning upon his new target.

"That's right." Buffy taunted. "Come on. Come and get me!"

The dog did just that. The only thing he wasn't prepared for was the fact that he wouldn't be able to catch her.

Putting her Slayer skills to the test, Buffy jumped out of the way just in time.

She jumped onto the roof of the awning just as the dog sunk his teeth into a pole.

"What's the matter, big boy?" Buffy taunted. "Did you miss your target? Get out of here!" She commanded. With that, she threw one more stake and watched in satisfaction as the Pit bull made a whimpering sound and ran from their backyard.

Once she was sure the dog was gone, Buffy jumped from her crouched position and landed a few feet away from Anya.

Her daughter was sobbing from pain and shaking from fear.

Kneeling in front of her so she wouldn't scare her, Buffy tried to get her attention verbally first. She knew she had to get her medical help, but she didn't want to scare her any further.

"Anya, sweetheart, it's okay now. It's okay. You're going to be okay." With that, she checked the little girl's injuries before she attempted to move her.

There was a lot of blood and Buffy knew that wasn't a good sign.

Anya's right cheek was all covered in blood as was her right arm.

As for her eye, it looked really bad.

Once Buffy had assessed her as best she could, she took her daughter into her arms and picked her up.

As Anya felt her mother wrap her arms around her, she buried her face in her shoulder as the dam broke.

All Buffy could do was stroke her hair and soothe her as best she could. She had been scared for her daughter, but she knew it was nothing compared to how scared Anya must have been.

"Shh, shh, it's okay. It's okay. It's okay now. Mommy has you now. I'm gonna get you help."

"I was so scared!" Anya tearfully confessed as her mother continued to soothe her.

"I know you were, sweetie." Buffy assured her as she planted a kiss on her head. "I was scared too. But you're gonna be okay."

Standing up with Anya in her arms, Buffy ran for her car and put Anya in the backseat.

Once she was buckled in, Buffy jumped in the front seat and peeled out of the driveway.

"Mommy, it hurts!" Anya cried from the backseat.

"I know, sweetheart. I know. You're going to be okay. I'm taking you to get help. You'll feel better soon."

Buffy was thankful she hadn't been stopped due to how fast she had been driving.

Pulling into the parking lot, Buffy didn't even bother turning the car off.

She carefully, but quickly picked Anya up and carried her inside.

"I need help! Please!" Buffy cried desperately. She never normally lost control of her emotions, but when Anya or Dawn's well being was involved, all bets were off.

A nurse named Ally spotted Buffy and ran over. She took one look at Anya's face and her right shoulder and took charge immediately.

"What happened?" She asked as she led Buffy into a trauma room.

"She was bitten by a Pit bull!" Buffy explained. "I scared him off, but it was…it was too late."

Ally could tell the young woman before her loved her daughter very much. She was holding onto her protectively and the nurse of the last ten years could see unshed tears in her cobalt eyes.

"What's her name?" She asked. She was trying to be gentle, despite the fact that time wasn't' on their side.

"Anya." Buffy said softly. "Anya Joyce Summers."

"Okay." She replied. "We're going to take care of her. I need you to lay her down on the bed now."

Buffy nodded and did so as though on automatic pilot.

"I have to stay with her. I-I can't leave her."

"You can stay for now." Ally assured her. With that, she left to get some supplies and a few other doctors to help her.

Once she was gone, Buffy let the unshed tears fall. She hardly cried in front of her daughter, but she couldn't help it this time. She felt like she had failed her.

Sure, she had scared the dog off and she had gotten Anya to the hospital in record time. But she hadn't been able to prevent the attack itself.

As guilt washed over her, Anya's tiny and scared voice brought the Slayer out of her thoughts.

"Mommy!"

"Shh, it's okay, Ahn. I'm right here. I'm not gonna leave you. I'm so sorry, baby. Mommy's so sorry this happened."

"It's not your fault." Anya said.

This only made the tears fall harder.

Here Anya was, scared and hurt and she was trying to assure Buffy she wasn't at fault.

That was just like her baby girl. She always thought of others first. That was one difference between her and her name sake.

Anya reached her hand out and Buffy gave her little girl what she needed.

But to her surprise, instead of squeezing it for comfort, Anya pulled it towards her and kissed it gently.

"It's okay." She said, even though she was in a great deal of pain. "I'm not mad at you. I love you, Mommy."

"I love you too, Anya. I love you so much. You may not be mad at me, but I'm mad at myself."

"Why?" The five-year-old asked quizzically as she sucked in a breath of pain.

Buffy shook her head.

As she thought of the best way to explain, Ally returned with a team of doctors.

They started working on Anya's injuries right away.

After they had stopped the bleeding, they started an IV and rehydrated the little girl. They then gave her some pain killers and explained to Buffy that she would need surgery to fix the damage.

Buffy signed the forms and waited with Anya in pre-op until she was taken into the OR.

"I love you, sweetie." Buffy said softly as she kissed Anya's left cheek. "Mommy loves you so much. You're my brave girl."

Anya mumbled that she loved her back before sleep took over.

Once Anya was taken in, Buffy let the tears of guilt fall freely down her peach colored skin. How could she let this happen to her baby?

Trying to compose herself, she pulled out her cell phone and called Dawn. She had to know.

"Hello?" Dawn asked when she picked up.

Buffy tried to steady her voice, but it was hard. She could never lie to Dawn and she knew it full well.

"Da-Dawn?" Buffy started.

Dawn could tell by the tremble in her older sister's voice that something was wrong.

"Buffy, what's wrong?" Dawn asked anxiously.

"Sweetie, it's…it's Ah-Anya. We're at the hospital. Sha-She was attacked."

Dawn gasped.

"Attacked by what? Do you need me to find the vampire's nest for you?"

"No." Buffy replied. "She wasn't attacked by vampires."

"Then what happened?" Dawn asked.

Buffy couldn't hold the tears back any longer. She let them fall as she tried to explain to her little sister what had happened.

"…the fence wasn't fixed and…the dog…I ran out there just in time to see…she was so…I…I couldn't…I at-tried to…but…"

"I'm coming down. " Dawn said at once. "Where are you guys?"

"Dawnie, I don't want you to break your date." Buffy said as she took a deep breath. "I have a feeling we're gonna be here for a while. Enjoy yourself and then you can come down and see Anya."

"Buffy, I want to be there for you and Anya." Dawn said firmly. "What hospital are you at?"

Buffy felt a new set of tears in her eyes as her sister's words sank in.

Dawn had really changed over the last few years.

"We're at San Francisco Memorial." Buffy replied. "And Dawn?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"No thanks needed. Tell Anya I love her."

"I will." Buffy replied. With that, she hung up with her sister and called Xander next.

He too wanted to come down and Buffy knew it was futile to stop him.

Willow also wanted to be there for her best friend and niece. She left Alyssa with a friend of the family and told Buffy she would be down as soon as possible.

Buffy thanked her and hung up.

After that, she sat there and prayed that Anya would be okay. There was nothing left to do but pray. Pray and wait for her friends and sister to arrive.

Xander was the first one to arrive. He gave Buffy a much needed hug before producing a bear that said 'get well on it for Anya.

Buffy smiled at the bear and laughed a little when she saw it lit up and said some thing.

"She'll love it." Buffy said knowingly.

Dawn arrived shortly after. She too gave Buffy a hug and checked out Xander's get well gift.

As the two adults watched Dawn press the bear's paw for the fourth time, Xander chuckled softly.

"It looks like Auntie Dawn likes it too."

Dawn play swatted him just as Ally approached Buffy.

"Anya's out of surgery." She told her. "Everything went well. We might have to do some reconstruction down the road, but she's gonna be fine."

"Thank God. " Xander said before Buffy could get a word in edge wise.

"Thank you, Dr. Bryson." Buffy said with relief. "Can we see her?"

"Sure. But only two of you can go in at a time until she wakes up. She has lost sight in her right eye temporarily. Once the patch comes off and the eye has time to heal, she should regain it. Children tend to heal faster than adults. I have no doubt she'll be good as new in a few weeks."

Buffy nodded. She didn't let Anya's temporary blindness scare her. She knew her daughter. She might not be the next Slayer, but she certainly had the determination of one. This meant she would be just fine.

Walking into the hospital room her daughter occupied for the time being, Buffy's heart caught in her throat.

Her little girl looked so small and tiny in the hospital bed.

Her skin looked slightly pale and she had a patch over her right eye as Dr. Bryson had forewarned. She also had a bandage covering her right cheek.

Buffy sat down beside her daughter's hospital bed and took her tiny hand in hers.

"My poor baby." She said softly. "I'm so sorry, Ahn. I'm so sorry. Mommy never meant for this to happen. I love you so much, baby girl. I'm gonna help you get better. I promise. I'll do everything I can to help you. I promise." With that, she sat there and waited for Anya to wake up. She just prayed she would

be able to keep that promise.

THE END


End file.
